Efficient Fuel Canister Usage

[GA_Windbreaker]

Can someone share some tips on efficient usage of a fuel canister?

Thanks!

[The Splitter]

I make sure my stove is shielded from the wind and I also make damn sure I don't run the stove any longer than I have to. Before I turn the stove on I make sure I have all my water measured and food ready to go. I know exactly how long my food needs to boil and I time it, I also turn the flame down to just enough to keep a rolling boil.

The foods I cook are pretty fuel intensive and I use my stove three times a day but I can still get four-five days out of a 230g canister.


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[GA_Windbreaker]

How open should the valve be?

[Venchka]

Cover the pot to get the water boiling faster. Once food is added, slide the cover off enough to allow steam to escape and prevent boil over. The loose cover will maintain a boil with less fuel. Verified for decades on my stove at home. By the way, you can add the food (pasta, oatmeal, etc.) to cold water also. You don't need to wait until the water boils. All of these things contribute to reduced fuel usage and shorter cooking times.

Wayne

[The Splitter]

How open should the valve be?

Wide open initially to get water boiling and then if your cooking pasta or whatever, just open enough to keep a rolling boil. Also as Venchka said, you can put the pasta in the cold water. I do that too but forgot to mention it.

Also, Instant oatmeal and peanut butter is a great breakfast that only requires boiling a small amount of water and then mixing it all together.


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[Tuckahoe]

I've never run a canister stove wide open for a boil. It's a good way of consuming fuel a little faster. I have only ever opened up about half way or just enough to bring water/food to a boil.

One way of improving canister longevity is to use a pot cozy. If you're using dehydrated meals bring them to a boil, and after a boil of a couple moments transfer the pot to a cozy and let it stand about 20 minutes; rather than long simmering of food..

[Starchild]

Not really efficient usage, but efficient buying. Some canisters contain more fuel then others, and they all have different blends. The former is easy, for example the smallest canisters either have 100g or 110g of fuel depending on the manufacturer. Yes that may be 10g more weight, but it is also 10% longer burn time for 10g (and you still carry the same weight for it's container). The gas blends is a bit more complex as that is temperature dependent.

Other efficiency tips:
use a windscreen (be careful about not overheating the canisters)
cook in a location where wind it blocked
use a lid
chose a good pot/stove combo (good rule of thumb, nice contact area between pot bottom and flame, very little flame up the sides)
use a high efficiency pot (with a heat exchanger)
find a warmer water source
make only as much water as you need
purify your water and don't heat it to a boil, but just as hot as you need it.
use a campfire instead
pre-hydrate food in cold water
use a pot cozy for 'simmer' time instead of flame time
cook slower also seems to help

[bigcranky]

For pure efficiency (= using the least fuel), keep the valve about halfway open. It might take a little more time to boil water, but it does use a lot less fuel per boil.

Of course keep a lid on the pot, use a wide pot to capture as much heat as possible, and block all the wind (even a very light 2mph breeze will kill your efficiency).

Finally, buy an efficient stove. I had the Coleman F1 Ultralight, which was a little blowtorch and came in second to the Jetboil in the Backpacking Light tests on fuel efficiency several years ago. Used it for years, then before a Long Trail thru last summer I decided to do some real-world testing. The short answer is that the Jetboil is ~three times as fuel efficient under real world conditions, using about 5g of fuel to boil 2 cups of water, versus ~15g from the F1. All of this comes from the pot and the heat exchanger, I think. Given the spotty resupply on the northern section of the LT, being able to get more than twice as many boils from one canister was a boon.

[CarlZ993]

Some stoves are more fuel efficient that others: ex JetBoil, MRS Reactor/Windboiler (I own all three). Those stoves can really eke out fuel usage over time. They are heavier in weight, tho. You have to determine if the weight penalty is worthy of the increased fuel efficiency.

Of the 'standard' (as compared to 'remote burner' canister stoves) stoves out there, the Soto Windmaster seems to be the most fuel efficient that I've used (I own the PocketRocket, Snow Peak Gigapower, & the Soto Micro Regulator). The burner head is recessed (concave instead of convex) & less affected by the wind.

When setting up your stove, use natural windbreaks (tents, rocks, shelters, etc) to improve the efficiency. If you use a windscreen, do a half-moon enclosure & monitor the canister's temperature. You don't want something to go 'boom' in the backcountry.

I typically only turn on my stove about 1/2 way. It seems to be the most efficient method for me.

I utilize a pot cozy made from Reflectix. You can buy one or make it yourself. It really improves the fuel efficiency as you don't have to 'cook' your food beyond the initial boiling. Boil your water, dump your food in it, stir it a bit, turn off your stove, & put your pot in the cozy. Wait 10-20 minutes (depending on the food; couscous takes about 5 min, instant potatoes are done instantly) and then you're ready to eat.

[LuckyMan]

I used to follow the instructions on Knorrs rice and noodle dishes etc and cook for seven minutes or whatever it said. Then I learned to cook for only a minute after reaching boil; I put the pot in a cheap, easy-to-make pot cozy for 10 minutes or so and it is cooked fine. This way I've made small canisters last more than 10 days.

[peakbagger]

If you use a pocket rocket type stove you can increase your efficiency by about 20% by building a hanging shield that hangs down past the bottom of the pot to just above the fuel adjustment clip. It doesn't need to go all the way up the side of the pot. I made mine out of a strip of flashing that nests inside the pot when I am not using it. By using a shield, once the pot is boiling you can turn the fuel way down, far lower than if the burner was in the open. The big item is that once water has come to a boil, the bubbles are just extra heat being released to the air with no benefit to cooking except expensive and fairly ineffective agitation of the food in the pot. Your goal should be to turn down the gas until the liquid is just barely boiling and stir it on occasion. Cut cooking times by a 2/3rds to 3/4ers and use a pot cozy or just rig something up to let the meal sit for 10 minutes wrapped up. Also when you buy food, buy stuff that cooks quick. Lipton/knorr meals are usually either rice or pasta based, the instant rice rehydrates much quicker than the pasta so look for the rice based meals. If you want pasta look for angle hair versus thick noodles. Dehydrated veggies rehydrate much quicker than dried veggies. Avoid regular rice or beans.

I used to consistently get 13 days of two hot meals a day from a standard MSR canister unless it was quite cold out. Prior to rigging up my shield 10 was real good. Few folks go for 13 days and many dump their partially full canisters in hiker boxes when they resupply so if you don't mind carrying a dead canister, you can usually get a couple of days off someones leftover.

[MuddyWaters]

You have to play with your own setup. Its a balance between heat absorbed and heat lost .

I can get 0.18 oz/boil with a tight windscreen on LOW, I mean Low, taking 7.5 minutes to boil, similar to alcohol times. This is almost as good as a jetboil. The difference being, my setup weighs 3 oz and the jetboil weighs a hell of a lot more. To do this Im maybe open 1/4 turn or so. Thats all, and my windscreen goes under the burner head as well and around the bottom of the pot. This lets me get 20-22 days out of a little 3.5 oz container.

this only matters for long carries between resupplies, or lack of fuel. Most of the time, who cares, you can find new fuel every week or so.

In first test with my new little 0.9 oz stove, without a windscreen, indoors , i got 0.18 oz fuel to boil in 5:40 with a little wider 2.1 oz pot. I expect it will do better with tight windscreen when i get one cobbled up with way to support it.

[saltysack]

You have to play with your own setup. Its a balance between heat absorbed and heat lost .

I can get 0.18 oz/boil with a tight windscreen on LOW, I mean Low, taking 7.5 minutes to boil, similar to alcohol times. This is almost as good as a jetboil. The difference being, my setup weighs 3 oz and the jetboil weighs a hell of a lot more. To do this Im maybe open 1/4 turn or so. Thats all, and my windscreen goes under the burner head as well and around the bottom of the pot. This lets me get 20-22 days out of a little 3.5 oz container.

this only matters for long carries between resupplies, or lack of fuel. Most of the time, who cares, you can find new fuel every week or so.

In first test with my new little 0.9 oz stove, without a windscreen, indoors , i got 0.18 oz fuel to boil in 5:40 with a little wider 2.1 oz pot. I expect it will do better with tight windscreen when i get one cobbled up with way to support it.

Can you resend pic of your windscreen set up...I lost the picture...I want to make one for my lite max before jmt.
Thx


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[bigcranky]

Quick update to this thread:

Just got back from a six day section in SW Virginia. I used our Jetboil Sol Ti to make coffee in the morning for two people (quick boil of 3 cups of water), and to cook a noodles meal in the evening (bring 2 cups to a boil and simmer for a couple of minutes, then cozy). Counting all the meals we had 4 breakfasts and 4 dinners, so 4 complete days of warm weather stove use for 2 people. Several mornings were very windy and we were camped in the open.

We used a total of 28 grams of fuel. That's an average of 7g per day for two people for two meals -- not bad at all in the efficiency department.

Even if I allowed a 50% margin for emergencies, that means a 100g canister will last us ten+ days on the trail in warm weather. Probably closer to fifteen days in real world usage. That fits with our exerience on the LT last summer.